What is ‘Astroturfing’ and how might it affect me?

Well, ‘it’s just not cricket’ or football for that matter and it’s certainly not sporting!

Research has found that some businesses are ambushing rivals with fake reviews and customers are using the threat of online criticism to win discounts.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found that 54% of UK adults used online reviews, and many found them valuable. It is estimated that £23bn a year of consumer spending was potentially influenced by online reviews.

However, it discovered cases known as ‘astroturfing’. This is the practice of creating fake grass root reviews on unnamed sites, for example:

Businesses writing fake reviews of themselves to boost their ratings on review sites compared with rivals;